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Robert Agnew's General Strain Theory

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Throughout the years, there have been several theories developed, in the field of criminology, seeking to explain crime and delinquency. Criminology is constantly evolving due to the political and economic views of society. Throughout this change,many theories were created, while other theories are proven to no longer be valid. Each theory whether valid or invalid, takes a different approach in its explanation of crime and delinquency. The question that many have tried to answer is, which theory has the most empirical validity and can best explain why individuals choose to engage in delinquent and criminal activity? According to the writer, the theory that best explains crime and delinquency is, Robert Agnew's General Strain Theory. The purpose …show more content…

Anomie was first introduced by Emile Durkheim, who is one of the founders of sociology. Durkheim defined anomie “as a a state of normlessness or lack of social regulation in modern society as one condition that promotes higher rates of deviant behaviors”(Akers &Sellers, 2013). According to Durkheim, malintegration occurs when there is a disassociation between valued cultural ends and legitimate societal means to those ends (Akers &Sellers, 2013). General strain theory was developed by Robert Agnew in response to earlier strain theories. Agnew's strain theory was influenced by the work of Durkheim and Merton and modeled after anomie. Agnew's theory was developed to broaden the concept of strain in order to incorporate several sources of strain and stress. Crime and delinquency are seen as an adaptation to stress. General strain theory defines the major types of strain, the links between strain and crime, and coping strategies to deal with the strain. General strain theory attempted to merge the revised theory with prior strain theories, and it drew heavily on the stress, emotions and justice literatures (Agnew, 2012). General strain theory is comprised of three major types of strain. The first type involves the inability to achieve one’s goals. This strain states that the failure to achieve several goals is conducive to crime (Agnew, 2012). The second major type …show more content…

General strain theory says there are many ways to adopt to stress. Crime and delinquency occurs when one does not have legitimate coping skills and the individual is bound by internal or external constraints. The theory says that community differences and racial and economic differences influence strain in the community. A study conducted by Wareham, Cochran, Dembo, & Sellers (2005) examined the degree to which community characteristics influenced individual levels of strain, negative affect, and delinquency and whether the effects of strain and negative affect on individual delinquency are more salient within communities characterized by higher levels of social and economic disadvantage. Agnew's general strain theory is not limited to class or race, but also looks at socioeconomic and economic problems as potential causes of delinquency. Both elements must be present for there to be delinquency. Economic problems that have been linked to delinquency are substantial changes in lifestyle due to the lack of money and the inability to purchase needed goods and services (Agnew, Matthews, Bucher, Welcher, & Keyes, 2008). Because of an individual's ability to obtain the items they need or desire, strain becomes present. When the individual cannot cope with that strain effectively, delinquency and crime

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While a few theories are not as regular, others have developed and are utilized as a part of numerous criminal reviews today. Cutting edge criminologists consolidate the most important aspects of sociology, psychology, anthropology, and biological theories to advance their comprehension of criminal behavior. Rational choice theory, psychological, biological, and strain theory are used to analyze the

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In a lecture to a Theoretical Criminology class in October of 2014, Dr. Ridener stated that Robert Agnew presented General Strain Theory in his landmark article

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The strain theory implies that crime may occur because of the stress or frustration placed on people when

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Agnew’s General Strain Theory in There Are No Children Here Introduction Throughout this semester, we have covered various criminological theories along with their strengths and limitations. These theoretical perspectives provide possible explanations to why individuals commit crimes. In addition to, these theories are indirectly woven within cultural objects such as song lyrics, movies, books, and television.

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The strain theory is relatively close to the social disorganization theory, regarding poverty rates, and unemployment rates within

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a. Use Strain Theory to define and explain the following: i. The theft of a loaf of bread by a hungry person Using strain theory, the theft of a loaf of bread by a hungry person can be explained as a situation where an individual employs different means of success of getting fed, one that is against the agreeable ways in the society of getting money and feeding themselves. ii. Alcoholics Using strain theory, an alcohol has ultimately rejected the society’s goals of conforming to the societal values such as happiness and a stable job, such an individual essentially rejects the goals because they have been ultimately been unable to live up to the society’s standards. iii.

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Strain theory has been expanded by other scholars. Robert Agnew's General Strain Theory (GST) broadens the concept by identifying three major types of strain: the failure to achieve positively valued goals, the removal of positively valued stimuli, and the presentation of negative stimuli. GST posits that individuals who experience strain are more likely to engage in criminal behavior if they lack the ability to cope through legitimate means, have low self-control, and are in a social environment that encourages criminal

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Strain theory is general is best applied to lower class struggles and doesn’t tend to offer any stable explanations for why white-collar crime exists. However, this theory is slightly addressed with Agnew’s theory which is why the theory was created much broadly than Merton and Durkheim’s. Agnew’s general strain theory presented multiple strain-producing types that can result in the chances of criminal behavior this theory was the most important and influential out of all the theories and countered Merton’s classic theory (Hosier & Hosier). Agnew identified types of general strain as failure to achieve positively valued goals, removal of positive stimuli, and the presentation of negative stimuli (Hosier, Ch. 5 Pt. 2 Lecture) Agnew was progressive in his points that stated there were various forms of strain that caused people to experience negative emotion but still does not account why for why people deal with the consequences of strain differently and now everyone who experiences strain or stress resort to delinquency, and how some individuals are capable of positive coping mechanisms.

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Merton. The theory states that society puts pressure on individuals to achieve socially accepted goals (such as the American dream) though they lack the means, this leads to strain which may lead the individuals to commit crimes. Two major concerns in strain theory are the sources of the strain, stress or how people adapt to the strain. Positivism are theories of social and structure are strain theories.

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Strain Theory In accordance to experiencing strain or stress, people may become upset and sometimes engage in crime as a result to either cease or reduce the stress they are experiencing. For example they may steal to reduce financial stress or violence as revenge to those that have wronged them. There are two major types of strain that contribute to crime

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Surprisingly, they also found that in communities with a small black population that the white on white crime went up. Segregation of these communities not only has income disparity, it also has poverty which fosters crime. This can be explained through social disorganization and strain theory. Strain theory is based on the strain or stress one receives that may result from the failure to achieve a variety of goals and so they engage in crime as a result. In poverty, many choose crime as a means to obtain

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In 1985 Robert Agnew a sociologist come to an interest of studying the theory and finds a potential for the theory in explaining several causes of crime in society, but due to its limitation he developed and reformulated the theory to widen its dimension or scope. After revising the theory he come up into General strain theory of crime and builds its foundation in 1992. General strain theory argues that frustrations and anger leads someone to deviance and may result into committing a crime (Agnew, 1992). GST defines strains as negative life events and conditions which are commonly disliked by the people who experience it or negative experiences of a person in a given group (Agnew, 1992; 2001; 2006). Strain is often classified in two distinct types, the Objective Strain and the Subjective Strain.

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In researching the Strain Theory, some models refer to the Relative Deprivation Theory. Relative deprivation refers broadly to people’s perceptions of their well-being relative to their comparison of others (Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services). For many that became financially deprived because of the financial crash, comparing what they had to what others have, and what they are entitled to, became a strain. Relative deprivation results in the feelings of despair, frustration, grievance, and anger which all can become a powerful motivator of crime (Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services).Crimes usually committed by this group of individuals are property crimes, drug use, and in some instances violent crimes. Because of the financial crash there have been changes to the labor force, there has been a drop in the number of manual jobs available to employ the least educated, which has led to unemployment amongst young people and poor people.

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Albert Francis Charles Augustus Emmanuel Cohen presented the theory of gang constitution that used Merton’s strain theory as a basis for why individuals resort to such group behavior. There are five adaptions to strain and of the five Sanyika was proximately cognate to the adaptation of revolt, which is the most complex of the five adaptations. Strain is considered the primary source for the development of criminals. According to Cohen, delinquent youths begin to value destruction of property and skipping school, not because these behaviors lead to a payoff or success in the conventional world, but simply because they defy the conventional norms and laws as good, thereby psychologically and physically rejecting the cultural system that has been imposed on them without preparation and fair distribution of resources. (Tibbets, p. 116)

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All of these theories explain crime in terms of social environment, including peer groups, family, school, workplace, community, and society. Yet these theories differ from one another. They offer different explanations why social environment causes crime. Some focus on individual differences in crime while others try to explain group differences. The strain theory suggest that people commit crimes because some type of stress or strain going on in their lives.

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